Despite the promised withdrawal of Kenya’s controversial tax bill, protests against the president’s government continued William Ruto Thursday, with gunfire reported in Nairobi.
The situation was tense in the capital, where protesters announced a march on State House, Ruto’s official residence.
Access roads were cordoned off over a large area and numerous police and military personnel were stationed throughout the city.
The streets around Parliament, which was stormed by demonstrators on Tuesday, were also cordoned off.
The first demonstrators gathered around noon in central Nairobi, where many shops were barricaded. Television footage showed police using tear gas against the crowd and shots were also heard.
Demonstrations reportedly also took place in other Kenyan cities.
In the third-largest city of Kisumu, in western Kenya, several hundred people marched to the presidential box, another of Ruto’s official residences. There they gathered for a peaceful sit-in protest, the Nation newspaper reported.
According to one protester, violent criminals mixed with demonstrators in Mombasa and tried to loot shops. “They have nothing to do with us,” she told television station KTN.
There were scenes of violence last week as thousands of people joined protests against the tax law, which was aimed at easing Kenya’s high national debt.
But protesters say the measure would impose unaffordable tax increases on ordinary citizens and businesses already burdened by the high cost of living.
Ruto said in Nairobi on Wednesday that he would not sign the bill into law after clashes led to a number of deaths.
